Primary navigation
About streaming media on this site
Clips, trailers and other elements of moving image and sound are available on the bfi website in three formats: Windows Media, Real and Quicktime. They are available in three bandwidths, for dialup modem and broadband users. Some material is also available in MPEG-4 H.264 format.
Choosing a clip to view
Choose either Windows Media, Real or QuickTime depending on which player you have installed on your computer. Clicking on any link should automatically launch the player if it is installed.
- Choose the 56k link if you are connected to the internet by an ordinary telephone modem.
- Choose Broadband if you are connected to the internet by ASDL or cable modem, or are on a fast corporate network.
If you find yourself experiencing delays in accessing the material, try choosing a lower bandwidth. If you would like to experience higher quality, try experimenting with a higher bandwidth.
Downloading the media player you need
You will need a player capable of playing Windows Media, Real or QuickTime files. You can download by following these links:
Windows Media Player (all systems)
QuickTime Player (all systems)
There are a number of alternatives to these players, including MPlayer and VLC. For more information see the Wikipedia Comparison of media players article.
Trouble with streams
You should be using Windows Media Player in version 9 or higher, Real Player in version 8 or higher, or QuickTime Player in version 6 or higher. If your player is significantly out of date you may have to download an upgrade or new version to see or hear streaming content.
To view files which use the MPEG-4 H.264 codec you need QuickTime Player 7, or an alternative such as MPlayer or VLC.
You may experience problems watching Windows Media Player files on an Apple Mac running OS 9 or earlier. This is due to technical problems which are beyond the control of the bfi. We recommend that you use QuickTime where available or Real Player to watch video from this site on the Mac OS 9 platform.
If you are persistently unable to access streaming media from this site, after you have made all the necessary checks on your own system (including checking that you can access streaming media in the same formats from other sites), please contact us using the link at the bottom of the page. We will do what we can to rectify any problems that exist with our servers, but cannot guarantee an instant response. We are unable to offer you any kind of support relating to your own computer system.
